


Closest Thing I Have to a Mother Now...

by btvscharmedgirl



Category: Legacies - Fandom, The Originals (TV)
Genre: F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:14:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27011086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/btvscharmedgirl/pseuds/btvscharmedgirl
Summary: What if Cami hadn't died and was a therapist at the Salvatore School...
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 10
Kudos: 108





	Closest Thing I Have to a Mother Now...

**Author's Note:**

> So this is another small fic based off of a tweet I saw. This time it is this tweet from user @miracIebryant: imagine if camille was the school therapist instead of emma and hope got to have at least one member of the family near her and when everyone forgot about her she went to cami instead of alaric and this happened

Hope was tired… She hadn't slept for most of the week, and when she did it was usually only for a few hours here and there when she found a semi-comfortable place to lay her head. When she was awake, she spent most of her time chasing around a monster that refused to freaking die. However, her physical exhaustion was nothing compared to her mental and emotional exhaustion. Both of those had reached new levels, particularly with the events of the day.

The monster she was chasing led her into the belly of Mystic Falls High School, where she unexpectedly bumped into someone she had been doing her damndest to avoid. The woman who had been the closet thing she had to a mother since both her parent's deaths, Cami O'Connell.

Cami O'Connell had primarily been in Hope's life through her father Klaus. She came to visit on her birthdays and holidays in place of her father. She sent gifts and wrote her letters. Cami had been a good friend to her. That changed when Klaus and Hayley died. When Hope returned to the Salvatore Boarding School the fall after their deaths, as did Cami who took a position as the school's resident therapist. The was an opening and after much talk between the adults in Hope's life, they agreed Cami were the best fit for the job.

Hope was not happy with it at first. She felt like Cami was only there to keep an eye on her, and in a way she was. It took some time, but Hope warmed up to having Cami around for when she needed her. She had always found it easy to talk to Cami and having her in the school in a professional setting hadn't change that. With Caroline's permission, Cami began training Hope during their off hours, allowing Hope to work through her emotional and physical tension.

When the monsters started attacking, Cami was the one to help fight them, and it was Cami who pulled Hope back when she was slipping down a dark path. Cami had been more than just a friend, more than her dead dad's soulmate. She became the closest thing she had to a mother at the school.

Which is why she had been avoiding her at all costs. Hope knew that if she had seen Cami, even just for a few seconds, her resolve to leave Mystic Falls, and all the people who had forgotten her, would break.

She had been right.

Cami had been in the mortal's school as a peace offering of sorts. Their therapist had quit unexpectedly the day before school began, leaving them with no room to find a new one before school began. Cami had agreed to see a few of their students a day to tide them over until they could find a replacement.

Which is how Hope found herself staring into the eyes of the last person she expected to be at Mystic Falls High. She feigned being a new student, who had gotten lost on her way to register for classes, and Cami graciously helped her.

When Cami asked for her name, she instinctively went to say Mikaelson, then Marshall, but froze at both. She couldn't say either of those to Cami because Cami knew both her parents. So, she said the first name that popped into her mind… Saltzman. Which in hindsight wasn't the best idea, because then Cami start talking about the Saltzman twins, but Josie had been heavily on her mind all week.

Setting Hope up for classes took forever in Hope's mind. By the time she was all registered and ready for classes she would never attend, Hope's emotional meter was high. An hour with someone she loved, who had no idea who she was, hurt like hell. By the time she escaped she was itching for a good fight with the monster.

She found it fairly quickly, but it did little to help her anxiety because she also found Cami with it. They defeated it easily, each falling into the rhythm they once had, like Cami had never forgotten Hope.

Or so they thought.

When they returned a few hours later the monster was gone, and Hope was forced to spend the rest of the day with Cami as they hunted and killed the creature. Thankfully, the monster disintegrated, freeing Hope from having to bury the body.

Unfortunately, Hope had to say goodbye to Cami, which broke her heart. She wanted to stay but she also wanted to be remembered, which is something she couldn't have. So, she had to leave. It was the only way for her to live her life.

"You can't change the past, but you can do better in the future."

Cami was always telling her that. Whenever the mistakes from her past threatened to consume her. "You can't change the past, Hope, but you can do better in the future. Focus on that. Focus on your future." That is what Hope had to do. She had to focus on her future. It was the only way to keep all the dark thoughts and feeling from consuming her.

She had just made the resolve to go; to get on a bus and get as far away from Mystic Falls as she could; when a voice suddenly said, "Hey," from behind her. Her heart clenched at the familiar voice.

She looked back at Josie Saltzman, and for a second, she was sure her heart was about to jump out her throat. "Hey," she replied.

"We saw each other earlier, right?" Josie asked.

"Yeah," Hope replied, with a bit of struggle. Josie Saltzman was the second person she had been actively avoiding, and the reason she was so hell bent on leaving Mystic Falls. As much as she wanted to be selfish and tell Josie, the woman she loved with every fiber of her being, that she was back. She knew she couldn't. Josie had moved on.

It hurt to hear her say how much she cared for him, her boyfriend. How much she wanted to be perfect for him. She wondered if Josie ever had this conversation with someone about her. Had they been awkward at first? Had Josie struggled with their relationship?

Josie thanked for listening, then slowly left, leaving Hope even more heart broken than before. The resolve she had to leave was gone again. Replaced with the intense urge to follow Josie and to be honest with her.

She didn't of course. No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't throw this kind of a wrench in Josie's life. She was already struggling enough. Yet, she needed someone. She needed a moment of comfort and familiarity. She needed a mother.

Without thinking about it, Hope stood up and grabbed her bag. She cast a locator spell and followed it back to the Salvatore School. They changed the passcode, so she scaled the wall and snuck into the school to find the person she needed the most.

Cami was surprised to see Hope standing in her open doorway but didn't have a chance to express that before Hope began speaking.

"My name's not Hope Saltzman. It's Hope Mikaelson." She paused to catch her breath. "I'm Klaus and Hayley's daughter."

Cami's mouth dropped slightly in shock and then stood up.

Tears welled in Hope's eyes and her voice grew shaky. "And I know you don't remember this, but, um… You're the closest thing I have to a mother now… And the entire world has forgotten that I exist, and the girl I love has moved on. So, I have absolutely no idea what to do next."

Hope looked up at Cami, who had taken a step towards her. Cami sighed heavily. "It's okay. We'll figure it out together." She moved closer to Hope, who fell into her arms once she was in reach.

Cami had no memory of Hope, or even that Klaus and Hayley had a child. Yet she knew they were facing a monster with the power to wipe people's existence from everyone's mind, and all day long, she had been fighting the overwhelming feeling that she knew Hope. There was a comfort between them, in the way they move together as one when they were fighting the monster, and in the way she spoke to Hope.

And here Hope was, confirming a suspicion she had been contemplating all day long. She had no memory of Hope, yet the bond she shared with Hope remained. Her mind had forgotten her, but her muscle memory remained.

"You can't change the past, but you can do better in the future," Cami softly said.

Hope chuckled through the tears, then took a step backwards. "I missed hearing that."

Cami smiled at her. She gently wiped away the falling tears. "I may not remember you, but my heart still does. I am here for you. No matter what, Hope."

Tears began falling again and Hope instinctively leaned in for another hug. For the first time since she returned from Malivore, she didn't feel so alone.

She felt safe and she felt loved.


End file.
